Who would enjoy this book? Steak 'n' potato types, cooks who need some new ways to spiff up a weeknight dinner, anyone who grew up in New England or the Midwest (this book hit me right in the comfort zone)

Quick Facts

• Who wrote it: Susanna Hoffman and Victoria Wise

• Who published it: Workman Publishing

• Number of recipes: 250

• Other highlights: I'm struggling to put into words what I find so charming about this book. Maybe it's just its very boldness: a 2-color book with hand-drawn illustrations and no photos (gasp!) that somehow still gets its message across. Maybe it's that the recipes sound genuinely exciting — there's nothing that will shock you or feel too unfamiliar here, but there's a playfulness in the way the ingredients are combined and flavors are layered on that I love. It makes something as common as lasagna or a weeknight steak sound fresh and new again with a few unexpected ingredients.

This is also the kind of cookbook that makes for fun reading while you're waiting for the water to boil or the oven to heat. There are lots of fun side bars and historical anecdotes sprinkled liberally throughout the book.

Apartment Therapy Media makes every effort to test and review products fairly and transparently. The views expressed in this review are the personal views of the reviewer and this particular product review was not sponsored or paid for in any way by the manufacturer or an agent working on their behalf. However, the manufacturer did give us the product for testing and review purposes.

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Emma is the recipe editor for The Kitchn and a graduate of the Cambridge School for Culinary Arts. She is the author of True Brews and Brew Better Beer (Spring 2015). Check out her personal blog for more cooking stories.